The majority of football grounds house their dignitaries in the western stand, to save their grandest guests from squinting into the setting winter sun. However, from the very beginning, Highbury's heart was on the eastern side - the site of Archibald Leitch's original main stand.

The new 8,000-seat East Stand had been designed to match the slightly earlier West Stand's grandeur - but more so, as it was the main entrance and the public face of the club. Inside, it housed previously unheard-of matchday entertainment facilities like a restaurant and cocktail bar.

Outside, underneath a blood-red "ARSENAL STADIUM" and cannon motif, the club placed an omnipresent commissionaire to doff his cap at players and staff. Arsenal were making a statement.